(SomaliNet) Following recent attacks by the rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has renewed calls for the arrest of LRA leader Joseph Kony. "Kony, just as he has many times in the past, uses the peace talks to gain time and support, to rearm and attack again. The price paid today by civilians is high," a statement issued yesterday in The Hague said. "The criminals remain at large and continue to commit crimes and they are threatening the entire region. Arrest is long overdue."
The prosecutor said the LRA attacked villages in the Haut Uele district in the DRC on September 17. "These attacks all follow a similar method with markets surrounded and looted, students abducted from school, properties burned and dozens of civilians killed, including several local chiefs," said the statement. "Tens of thousands have now been displaced."
The UN estimates that between 43,000 and 100,000 Congolese are on the run.
Ocampo's office collected information indicating that at the end of 2007, Kony issued orders to abduct 1,000 persons to expand the ranks of the LRA, the statement added.
The ICC in 2005 issued arrest warrants for Kony, Okot Odhiambo and Dominic Ongwen. The ICC prosecutor urged regional and international organisations to support the DRC and Uganda in the "planning and execution of the LRA arrests." He commended those who had complied with requests to cut off financial and other support to the LRA.
Meanwhile, the UN Peace Keeping Mission in the DRC has appealed to the governments of Uganda, Sudan and DRC to develop a joint strategic plan to deal with the LRA. The mission's political affairs officer, Jacob Mogeni, told a security conference in Arua on Friday: "As a UN force, we have no mandate to directly engage the rebels. In fact, we can't pursue them. We can only launch an offensive against the rebels if they fired at us."